Logical Partition

A logical partition is an independent area of the hard drive. It acts as one of the partitions spawned from extension as permitted by the master boot record. Its size is described at the start of an extended partition as opposed to the master boot record. A logical partition is not required to fill the entire extension - empty space is maintained to make way for more logical partitions for future use. Partitions are generally used in different scenarios. It may be used for effectively operating a database, or managing a client or server. Each one is able to seamlessly communicate with others. The use of logical partitions was first studied and tested in 1976 by IBM. Since then has also been used by Hitachi and Sun Microsystems. Today it is a common practice in many IBM branded computers. Platforms such as Linux and Unix are easily installed on partitions of sufficient capacity whether primary or logical, unlike many Windows operating systems.